A thoughtful reader and fellow lover of taxonomies, Dianne Volek, suggested a new system of categories. Let's call the two types of people "Finishers and Openers."

Do you get more satisfaction from...

Throwing away a container or bottle after using the very last drop, or

Opening a fresh new container

I'm a Finisher; my husband is an Opener. I love to extract the last tiny bit out of a tube of toothpaste, and he loves opening the new tube. True, I do love that first squeeze, and the first dip into a new jar of peanut butter, but I also enjoy using the very last bit of the old stuff. I feel a real sense of accomplishment when I use the last egg in a carton (as I did this morning).

Perhaps this explains the weird satisfaction I feel when something breaks or is worn out. Why do I like to see the worn spots on our sofa? Why do I like getting a hole in a pair of socks? Perhaps it's my Finisher nature, delighting in the finish.

When I visited my sister a few weeks ago, I noticed that she had about twenty bottles of hair products in her shower. I suspect she's an Opener.

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